Letter questions Caseville president

MATT TREADWELL

Published 11:19 am, Monday, April 25, 2016

The note, dated March 8, was signed by resident Nora Hubert and addressed to President Clyde Campbell. It was copied to council members and stated the public official "is a disgrace to your job title and this town."

Campbell said the letter's allegations were of a personal nature and not appropriate for public discussion. The board met for about 15 minutes in private and did not comment on the matter when it reopened its doors to the public. "This is only one side of the story," the president said of the note, obtained by the Huron Daily Tribune after the meeting.

Campbell was appointed to the council in 2002 and was elected by local voters to his current term in 2004. His position is set to be put on the village ballot again in September 2007.

In action items presented before council Monday, the group agreed on a design concept to request from the Michigan Department of Transportation when it performs major roadwork to the M-25 bridge over the Pigeon River beginning in 2007.

The bridge likely will boast stamped "Bay Port stone" side structures and be trimmed with a black railing and street lamps.

More than 15 residents attended a public hearing held on the design question. The board made its decision following a by-hand majority vote recommendation of the audience.

MDOT officials said road crews likely will tackle the bridge project in halves, dropping traffic flow to one-lane alternating directions for the duration of the work.

They say the bridgework probably will start after August 2007's Cheeseburger in Caseville festivities and be completed before July 4, 2008, with work being done in the fall and following spring.

In other action, the board gave the go-ahead to its public works supervisor to seek bids for the pulverization and asphalting of State Street from M-25 to the northern village limits. The project is estimated to cost around $60,000.

It also agreed to increase its three full-time supervisors' short-term disability insurance benefits to $500 per week or almost 67 percent of their average weekly wages, whichever is less. That is up from a $350 per week rate.

"It doesn't look like it, but that is actually going to save the village some money," Village Administrator Forrest Williams said, adding that supervisors can no longer accumulate as many "sick days" as they could before in a trade off for the increase.

Wages for part-time village police officers also were increased to $14 per hour from $12.

In other action, the council adopted revisions to its ordinance regulating vendors inside the town limits by making it mandatory for the retailers to hold liability insurance to obtain a permit.

Williams said that change came as a result of the annual Cheeseburger in Caseville festival.

"On one hand, you like to have these vendors come to town, but there are a lot of costs involved," he said. "There has to be a way to offset that."

Vendor permit rates also were set at $500 for a five-day license. Individual retailers can hold up to two permits during one year.

The next regular council meeting is set for 7:30 p.m. May 9 at the village hall.